Automated pharmaceutical packaging devices that automatically dispense pharmaceuticals based on prescriptions and automatically package pharmaceuticals per prescription or per patient are known. However, such automated pharmaceutical packaging devices generally have a complex structure and are expensive, so that it is not practical for small-scale pharmacies or individuals to install an automated pharmaceutical packaging device. Thus, manual pharmaceutical sorting devices that are more reasonably priced than expensive automated pharmaceutical packaging devices and easy to use are still needed.
A pharmaceutical sorting device of Patent Document 1, for example, includes a support frame (7), a tablet bucket (8) having a plurality of cells (8c) and an open/close shutter (8f) that doubles as the bottom plate of the cells (8c), and a tablet tray (9, 9′) supported on the support frame (7) above the tablet bucket (8). The tablet bucket (8) is configured to be slidable relative to the support frame (7). When the tablet bucket (8) moves forward by one cell, the open/close shutter (8f) is released from the support table and drops down by gravity to open, while, when the tablet bucket (8) moves backward, the open/close shutter (8f) is closed. That is, pharmaceuticals (6) in the cells (8c) are dropped down as the tablet bucket is slid forward, so that the pharmaceuticals are dispensed to groups of a number of the cells. When the pharmaceuticals in the tablet bucket (8) have run out, a shutter actuation mechanism (10) operated by a solenoid (10a) opens open/close shutters (9d) inside cells (9c) of the tablet tray (9) so that pharmaceuticals (6) are supplied to the respective cells (8c) of the tablet bucket (8).